


lost for words like you (REWRITE)

by theafterimages



Series: frat au [31]
Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fraternity, Costume Parties & Masquerades, Costumes, Drinking, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-28
Updated: 2016-11-28
Packaged: 2018-09-02 20:05:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8681629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theafterimages/pseuds/theafterimages
Summary: The latest challenge in Jackson's quest to make himself see Mark as just a friend: Mark's costume for the Heroes & Villains mixer.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote the [original version](http://eveninadream.livejournal.com/15983.html#cutid2) of this last September. I reread it today, since the next Markson fic I need to write for this AU takes place the day after the H&V mixer, and realized that some of the details were no longer accurate. (For instance, in that version JJP are still playing the game, while I've since changed the timeline so that they get together earlier, and Jackson was still in denial about his feelings toward Mark.) The perils of having such a sprawling AU! I never actually liked how I wrote the original fic, anyway, so I admit I leaped at the chance to rewrite it. 
> 
> Frat AU master lists: [by storyline](http://eveninadream.livejournal.com/17207.html) and [by chronology](http://eveninadream.livejournal.com/9888.html).

The first thing Jackson sees when he walks into their room is Mark’s ass.

Not for the first time. Mark stays in their room a lot, so there are a lot of days that Jackson comes back to the apartment between classes or before meals and finds Mark sprawled stomach-down on the bed, scrolling through his phone or watching something on his laptop. But it’s definitely the first time Mark’s doing that clad in a skintight Spider-Man costume.

Jackson hastily shoves his hands behind his back. “You ready?” he blurts out.

Mark rolls over, tossing his DS aside. This is both better and worse; better because his ass is safely out of sight, but worse because there’s still so much else to see.

Jackson swallows. "Are you…” Jackson hesitates. He can't hesitate, he reminds himself. He needs to be normal. There's no reason _not_ to be normal. It’s just his really hot roommate... and favorite person in the world... wearing a Spider-Man costume and, apparently, nothing else. No big deal. “That’s… really tight, wow.”

“Oh, yeah,” Mark says, laughing awkwardly as he gets up. “It’s KT, so I figured-”

Jackson laughs, a little too loud and maybe also too close to desperate. “Yeah, they might not let you in otherwise.” Though they had better not look at Mark for too long. Though Jackson’s not sure how they will be able to help it; how anyone could…

Eyes on his face, eyes on his face, Jackson mentally chants, though looking at Mark’s face doesn’t help. He’s too damn handsome, especially when he’s smiling like that.

_Friendship_ , Jackson reminds himself, though he already has the sinking feeling that it won't do much good tonight.

 

 

 

 

Youngji makes the perfect Catwoman. “Mr. Wang,” she purrs, and lasts all of five seconds before she bursts out laughing.

Jackson laughs, too, and hugs her. “You look great.” 

“Thanks! Have you seen Hyejin yet? She’s Harley Quinn.” She points over to where Hyejin’s at the bar, talking to Yongsun and Byulyi, who are dressed as Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask.

Jackson grins, making a mental note to go talk to them soon. Yongsun visits Byulyi on campus a few times a month, but hasn’t stopped by many of their parties since she graduated last year. He’s glad she made an exception for this one. “Has Mark seen them yet?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen him—oh, there he is!” Youngji trails off as she evidently takes in the sight of Mark. Jackson very determinedly Does Not Look. “Wow, he looks—”

“You know what, let’s dance!” he says hastily, leading her in the opposite direction.

 

 

 

 

“Hey! Jackson Wang!” Youngji picks up her tail and swats Jackson with it.

“What?”

“Were you even listening to me?”

“I was!” he lies, jerking his gaze away from Mark.

“I _said_ , look, Taemin’s Batman, too.” She points across the room to where Taemin and Jongin have just arrived, Jongin dressed as Spider-Man and Taemin as Batman. Jongin’s costume is just as tight as Mark’s, Jackson notices. Not that it matters. Not that anybody’s Spider-Man related choices matter. At all. Not even a little.

As he watches, Taemin leans up and murmurs something in Jongin’s ear, looking elsewhere in the room. Jackson already has a sinking feeling even as he follows Taemin’s pointing finger to where Mark is talking to Donggeun and Sungjae.

“Be right back,” he tells Youngji hastily, and he can hear her laughing as he heads toward Mark, making his way through the crowd as best he can.

Taemin gets there first. Jackson’s not sure if it’s because he’s better at getting around people or because he’s evil. But Jackson’s not far behind, and that’s what matters.

“Hey, hey!” Jackson grabs Mark’s wrist, shielding him from the other two with his free arm. Mark’s laugh is startled and Jongin's expression is judgmental as hell, but Jackson focuses on Taemin. “You already have a Spider-Man!”

“Yeah, but _Jongin_ doesn’t have a Spider-Man,” Taemin points out in the worst Batman imitation Jackson’s ever heard, still eying Mark up and down.

“Shouldn’t you guys be hooking up with Baekhyun or something?” He’s heard the stories. (From Baekhyun himself, sadly. Jackson needs to start saying no when Zitao asks him to meet him and Baekhyun for dinner.) If Mark’s gonna have athletic, flexible, depraved sex with anybody it should be—well— _not_ those two, is the point!

Taemin nods meaningfully toward the couch, where Baekhyun is straddling Sanghyuk’s lap, kissing him like there’s no tomorrow. “I don’t think so,” he says mildly. 

Understatement of the year. Jackson sighs heavily. Dammit, why does Sanghyuk have to be so distracting?

Jongin, meanwhile, smiles at Mark. “Hey, did you finish the One Piece-”

“Yeah, I read all of them!” Mark says. “I’ll give them back to you tomorrow. Do you have more?”

“They’re at home, but there’s a pretty good scanlations site.”

“Oh, I think I know which one you’re talking about!”

Taemin grins, watching them. “Nerds.” 

Jackson had thought that Taemin’s Batman voice couldn’t get weirder, but adding fondness to it definitely did the trick. “I’m getting a drink,” he announces. “Mark? Coming?”

“Yeah, sure,” Mark says. Jackson decides to pretend he doesn’t notice his confused look, or how he smiles at Jongin. “Later?”

“Yeah,” Jongin agrees.

“He just means the manga, not a threesome!” Jackson interjects hastily. Best not to let Taemin get ideas.

Mark shakes his head. “Come on, Jackson,” he says, pulling him toward the bar. 

“He doesn’t even sound right!” Jackson lowers his own voice experimentally. “I could do so much better.”

Mark rolls his eyes. “I’m not nearly drunk enough for this.”

“Yes, drinks! And then dancing, or whatever you want. I’m keeping you.”

“Yeah?”

Jackson makes the mistake of looking at Mark, who’s so wide-eyed and hopeful and leaning toward him and—

“Until you go to Omega Chi,” he hastily adds. “For their party. Masquerade. Right? Whatever.” His heart’s pounding harder than it should be. Jackson really needs to stop looking at him until Mark stops being so good-looking. It’s not helping his friendship resolution at all. “But first, drinks. What do you want? I’ll have one, too.” Or five, he thinks as Mark smiles at him again. He’s way too sober for any of this.

Because tradition is sacred, they end up taking their drinks over to one of the reasonably free couches. They have to squeeze in next to Amber and Kangjoon, Jackson carefully draping the cape of his costume over Mark’s lap before he sits down. Mark’s not on Jackson’s lap tonight, because Jackson doesn’t hate himself, but he’s plastered along his side and keeps rubbing Jackson’s thigh. Just one more thing Jackson needs to teach himself how to ignore. Maybe tomorrow.

“So, did you do it?” Amber asks, drawing his attention abruptly back to their conversation.

“Do what?” he asks. 

She shakes her head, laughing fondly at him. “Not you, Mark. Upside down kissing, like in Spider-Man.”

Mark laughs, too, high-pitched in a way that Jackson knows means her question has touched some sort of nerve. “Nope,” he says. It’s definitely not relief that Jackson feels when he hears that.

_Upside-down blowjobs_ , he thinks, for _no reason at all_ , which makes him think of sixty-nineing, which draws up a mental image that—he gulps down some more beer and shoves the thought aside, more grateful than ever that the Batman costume is closer to armor than Spandex. Tight, tight Spandex. If Mark gets a boner he’ll be—goddammit, he needs to quit thinking about Mark’s dick this much. But whatever, guys think about sex all the time, because science, and Jackson thinks about Mark all the time, because friendship, so of course he gets his wires crossed. A lot. Especially when Mark’s wearing skintight spandex and—

Jackson hits his head against the back of the couch. He’s not sure what it says about him that no one even asks why.

All things considered, it’s a relief when Mark tells Jackson that he and Jinyoung are headed to Omega Chi’s annual Halloween masquerade. Jackson promises he’ll meet them there soon and waves them off, then glares at each and every person he catches watching Mark leave.

He has another drink, talks to a few more people, dances with Heeyeon and Kangjoon. Finally he decides it’s time to go to Omega Chi, but Hyejin catches his arm as he walks past where she and a half dozen more people are gathered around the table, waiting as Taehyung deals cards for what Jackson guesses is the traditional strip poker game. Jackson spares a moment to feel sentimental—it used to always be Jaebum dealing the cards, getting ready to eyefuck Jinyoung through another round of the world’s longest game of gay chicken.

Wait, is it still gay chicken if the people playing aren't straight? Jackson thinks about it, and decides to ask Mark later. He might know.

“You’re playing, right?” Hyejin asks him.

Jackson shakes his head. “Omega Chi-”

“Are you worried I’ll beat you again?” she teases. Wheein's dimples flash as she laughs up at him from her perch on Hyejin’s lap.

“You _barely won_ , it doesn’t even count,” he debates, immediately sitting down next to them.

“She killed you,” Hongbin says, giggling. His cup is half-empty; judging from how he’s listing against Zitao’s side, it’s not his first. 

Jackson scoffs. “Whatever! I’m playing.”

He ends up falling asleep at Kappa Tau a few hours later, masquerade forgotten, not suspecting that it’s the party where Mark’s _not_ in the life-ruining costume that will, well, ruin Jackson’s life—but that’s another story.


End file.
